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Gonzales heads Cardinals' non-roster invites

Group of 18 players is set to join club at big league Spring Training

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Top Prospects: Gonzales, STL 0:48

2013 MLB.com Top Prospects: Marco Gonzales throws his fastball in the low 90s and commands it very well

By Jenifer Langosch
/
MLB.com |

ST. LOUIS -- Left-hander Marco Gonzales, the Cardinals' top pick in the 2013 First-Year Player Draft, is among 18 non-roster players to whom the Cardinals have extended an invitation to Major League Spring Training.

On Tuesday, the organization announced that full list of invitees, which also includes former first-rounders James Ramsey, Stephen Piscotty and Patrick Wisdom. Of the 18 players listed, all but two (Ed Easley and Scott Moore) were with the organization last season. Moore and Easley signed Minor League deals with the organization earlier this winter.

Combined with those currently on the 40-man roster, the Cardinals have 57 players projected to be in big league camp this season.

In addition to having four first-round Draft picks on this list, the Cardinals also offered an invitation to their most recent Minor League Pitcher of the Year, Petrick, who opened last season virtually unknown. Signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2012, Petrick climbed three levels to Double-A in '13 and finished the season with a 1.99 ERA in 34 games (13 starts).

Piscotty and Ramsey are two of the top outfield prospects in the Cardinals' farm system, while Kelly, 19, is making a methodical climb through the organization after being made a second-round pick out of high school in 2012.

Pitchers and catchers will report to the Cardinals' spring complex in Jupiter, Fla., on Feb. 12, and have their first workout the next day. The first full-squad workout is scheduled for Feb. 18.

The Cardinals also filled in the final few holes on their Minor League coaching staffs on Tuesday. Erik Pappas, who played with the Cardinals from 1993-94, has been named the Double-A hitting coach. Pappas served as the hitting coach for Peoria (low Class A) last season.

Jobel Jimenez (Peoria) and Kleininger Teran (Gulf Coast League) have also been named to hitting-coach positions.